Florida State QB E.J. Manuel feels at ease in offense

TALLAHASSEE — Several months before he finally donned Florida State garnet and gold, then-high school recruit Telvin Smith was paying close attention to the Seminoles.

Watching FSU rally from behind on New Year's Day 2010 to beat West Virginia in the Gator Bowl, he realized, like others watching that day, that there were just two letters he would soon need to know: E and J.

"I was like, 'Aw, man, E.J.,'" said Smith, now a sophomore FSU linebacker, laughing as he remembered his reaction to seeing the Seminoles' young quarterback, E.J. Manuel, for the first time.

The bowl's MVP, the redshirt freshman Manuel threw for 189 yards and had a big fourth-quarter touchdown run that gave FSU its final lead of the game.

If he continues to feel and play as comfortably as he has this spring, Manuel could be causing others across the nation have reactions similar to Smith's in no time.

After just two-and-a-half weeks of spring practice, the junior believes he has gotten a firm grasp on FSU's offense. He threw for three touchdowns in a 29-for-42 passing effort during Monday's first spring scrimmage.

"I feel like it's easy now," Manuel said. "Not to say that my defense isn't good, but I know what I'm supposed to be looking at and I can recognize it all quick, like pre-snap. [Quarterbacks] Coach [Dameyune] Craig has really helped me with that, as well as [head] Coach [Jimbo] Fisher. I'm seeing the right things and I'm making the correct decisions so far."

He has done other things correctly, too. Manuel has wowed Fisher with a leadership, focus and comportment more befitting of a fifth-year senior set to stage his final hurrah.

"[He was] managing people, getting on people, encouraging people, leading people," Fisher said after the scrimmage. "It's like you're very comfortable with him in charge with your unit."

Manuel enters next season as the Seminoles' starting quarterback following a year of alternating starts and snaps with former FSU signal-caller and NFL draft hopeful Christian Ponder. Two seasons ago, Manuel started the last four games after Ponder was sacked by a season-ending injury.

Coach and quarterback aren't the only ones taking note of Manuel's development in Fisher's pro-style system. Even though their goal is to stop him, defensive players like cornerback Greg Reid are thrilled with the direction Manuel appears to be headed.

"First of all, you don't really know if you're getting a sack or if he's running the ball or throwing the ball downfield," Reid said. "It's kind of hard to judge him a little bit. I feel like his eyes kind of throw me off a little bit when I'm getting my three-step. He's a great quarterback and he's developing a lot into Jimbo's offense."

Manuel's eyes, hips, arm and everything else has caused Smith to shift his focus upon other players during scrimmages.

"When I'm on one side of the ball as opposed to the other side of the ball in a scrimmage, he's an opponent. So I really don't try to look at him as a big threat," Smith said. "I just try and say, 'He's a good quarterback, he's going to make passes. I just have to come back and play the receivers.'"

If Manuel continues to feel this good in Fisher's system, other linebackers may be forced do like Smith and show deference to the budding star.